Chapter Text
It all went wrong so fast.
Dr. Garcia and Baron Draxum were removing the alien parasite piece by piece from Donatello’s vulnerable shell. Casey changed into a sealed hazmat suit in order to assist with opening and sealing various containers with the pieces of Kraang. The medical drones were watching over the other turtle’s vitals, sanitizing equipment, adjusting lights, replenishing supplies and removing waste.
Simple, until the largest part of the parasite leapt from Donatello’s surgically exposed shell. It landed with a sickening splat, slithering away at a demonic speed.
“A donde se fué?!” (Wha-where’d it go?!) Lucia whispered yelled, the Baron already in motion. He threw a scalpel at the slippery creature, who changed direction.
“RED! It’s going for Red!!” Splinter stood up, alert and reached for their eldest son.
Once that disgusting pink slime touched the sleeping snapper, it was too late. It wormed inside his green skin, and disappeared from sight. Moments later, neon yellow eyes blinked open in a scowl.
“No, n-no..! Raph! No, not again!” Michelangelo awoke to his nightmare. Looking down at his Mystic-wrapped arms, he began to tear the bandages off. His eyes glaring, glowing orange.
“ORANGE! Wake the twins and get out of here! Your mother will follow you!” Splinter commanded as he dodged Raph’s punch that shattered the cabinet behind him.
“ ABSOLUTELY NOT !!” Lucia roars, startling all of them. “One boy might as well be a fillet and the other has LIFESAVING equipment attached and cannot be moved!!”
Casey already had his weapon conflicted, “What do we do then?!”
“If you had fought this menace before, why don’t you tell us!” Draxum snapped, growing vines from the ceiling and floor to keep infected Raphael in place.
“I wasn’t there when they got it out of him! In the future, only Master Donatello could do that by himself!!” Casey replied, rolling under a kick to whack Raphael behind the knees.
Mikey wobbled over to his mother. His arms hanging, the mystic burns re-igniting. The edges of the cracks are bleeding slightly. He had a lost look to his eyes that no one could pay attention to at the moment.
The snapper on his knees briefly, before growing a slimy blade from his forearm. Slicing vines off of him, he stared at the unconscious Leonardo across the room. Then it looked around with an ugly grin. It mouthed something, or tried to, looking eerily excited.
Raph’s body was trembling.
“Lucia please! Take the boys out of here!” Splinter pleaded as Kraangified Raphael tore through the rest of the vines and swatted the Baron into the printer through the wall.
Ignoring her partner with a plan in mind, Lucia was setting up another anesthesia machine. Along with as many mutant turtle sedatives as she could find. Giving a drone a sample of the Kraang to get answers they sorely needed, she was about to face her Kraangified son when Mikey grabbed her arm.
A deep ache flowed from his touch.
Seeping into her bloodstream as her mystic energy was taken by something much older than her. Turning to look at her youngest, she was met with someone she didn’t recognize. Yet, it felt like she met them before, the wisps of white hair on the sides of his aged face. Playful orange spots on his face, deep wrinkles both of grief and joy lined his expression.
“I’m sorry. I have to use you again…please don’t hate me.”
His leathery hands flickered to the smaller version that she knew. He patted her cheek with a slight tremble. Lucia was aware he was doing something with her stored mystic energy. He was taking it all away, for what? Right now of all times?
Opening one hand towards the chaos, orange chains laced with pink tore through the red snapper holding him to the floor, the parasite thrown out in the process.
Casey swooped in with a container as Draxum used a vine to tangle the parasite’s appendages together. Splinter used a tray to smack it into the container where Casey spun it closed. The drones quickly scanned the entire room, chirping in confirmation that the threat of infection was currently contained.
“Ma..? Mike, what are ya doin to ma..?” Raphael whimpered in pain, his nerves on fire from inside the chains. His eyes were their normal color blurred by unshed tears mixed with blood.
Everyone turned around, Casey’s concern went to shock as he studied the flickering form of a loved one he didn’t expect to see again. “Master Michelangelo?!”
Master Michelangelo was now holding Lucia’s hand in a death grip, siphoning their mystic energy into a levitating multicolored orb. Flashes of blue, red, purple and orange swirled inside it.
With a pained smile, “Casey, I’m so sorry-AGH!”
The orb pulsed once along with the dazzling aura of the Master, then twice. Two more times and it broke into 4 flares of energy blinding everyone in the room before fading away.
“...ma…? Mikey..?” Raphael asked, landing on the floor in an easy roll once the chains disappeared. He kept rubbing his eyes to clear his vision, ignoring the steady rise of pain behind them. Nearly tripping over a shocked Splinter, Draxum pulled the snapper back by the shell.
“Wait a moment.” The goat Yokai’s eyes never leaving the stranger who started to sit up.
His tattered orange cloak was all Casey needed to see. “Master Michelangelo!” Sprinting forward, then fell to his knees in tears.
The Mystic Master opened his arms with a warm smile, tears already flowing. “Case, Come ’ere Casey Jr!”
Holding his mentor close, “Master, I can’t, I didn’t think I’d ever see you again! The way you, you-” Rubbing Casey’s back as he always had before, rocking him to soothe him. The orange-clad master softly repeated apologies and words of affection to the boy he helped raise, ignoring everyone else in the room.
Casey’s weeping stirred Lucia awake from the floor. Her youngest child was in her arms, who was far, far too cold. Her mind felt like it was forcibly rebooted, taking too long to pull up her list of tasks. She could feel urgency in her veins.
Thankfully, Gumi, her main assistant medical drone, had the charts of the most critical patients. It buzzed urgently, the twin’s heartbeats were too high and in sync. Their temperatures were too high, oxygen levels too low, also in sync.
“ Dios! ” (“God!”) Dr. Garcia scrambled up with Mikey in her arms. Placing her son on a berth, she ran over to her twins and began to administer treatment.
“Drones! If you need to act independently then do so!! Especially if the patients are critical! God, what a mess!!” She was racing around like a whirlwind. Getting what she needed from undamaged cabinets and shelves,
“Splinter I need you to handle whatever is happening over there! Get Mikey warm ASAP! Draxum, I need you! We left the twins exposed too long, we gotta close them up..!”
Draxum observed the pair hugging on the floor for a moment longer before shoving Splinter. “Time to be a useful, responsible parent Lou.”
Shaking his head, Splinter glared at the Yokai, “I-”
An alarm pierced the brewing argument and tears.
“NO! No, please baby stay with me- DRAXUM!! He’s tanking! God please, PLEASE!!” Lucia was a blur of motion over her boy, the fight with the parasite must have opened or worsened his condition.
Draxum looked over the charts, current data from the drones who were in a frenzy. A new bit of information about the Kraang was revealed, the warrior alchemist frowned as he pulled up notes from past experiments.
Forcing herself to calm down, trusting that the fact Baron was calm was a good sign. It had to be. He knew the boys biology better-
“Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee-”
The steady beep froze her veins.
Leonardo was flatlining.
His heart may have burst from how quickly it was beating. So many things could have gone wrong with all of the delays. A drone got in her face as it showed an internal scan. It replayed the moment his heart ruptured.
A fragment of debris tore open his bruised heart from the inside through the bloodstream. She didn’t see that in the scans. It was minuscule. She should have seen it. What can she do now? There’s too much damage-
“You can save him. You’ve done it before.”
Lucia turned around to face the speaker, her eyes shaking with held back tears and flushed cheeks. From the floor, Master Michelangelo’s expression was stony, yet reassuring. His eyes were clear, not a grain of deceit.
“Barry experimented on you, made you into a feral yokai monster with mystic energy you couldn’t access.”
Lucia could feel precious seconds tick by, time that she should be using to save her sons. She couldn’t seem to move. People were saying things, chaos at the current loss but she couldn’t hear them.
“You were remade as I rewrote time. Don’t think, I’ve crafted your soul into a masterpiece…fearfully and wonderfully made, just for a time like this.”
His eyes flashed bright orange as hers flashed pink.
Donatello couldn’t scream.
Oh how he wished he could. His body on autopilot as his mind raced a million miles away.
He held his younger brother, his twin, in his lap. His hands weakly covering the hole where his twin’s heart should be. Neon blue ninpo was leaking out instead of blood. It pooled all around the purple genius, who knew too much and yet much too little.
‘He cannot save his brother’ his mind stated.
‘He has to! There’s always a way! Think harder!! Science can do anything!’ his heart cried.
Donatello shuddered, tears of purple mixing with the blue. He could have built a mechanical heart, but he didn’t have the time or materials to do it. He could make Leo a battle shell to cover all the wounds, he could. He knew he could.
He didn’t have time.
“Leo you dum dum…I love you. I love you. I, ugh, you wretched twin of mine I love you..! I wish it was me. I wish iT WAS ME!!”
His chest heaved, choking on the words as he snuggled the cooling corpse closer.
The one who did this watched from above the purple force field, pleased with the entertainment. It could wait for the next game. It had nothing but time.
With the blue one’s death, the predator remembered more of its purpose.
“>Find the key, Free the Kraang.<” It rumbled, tasting the words.
“You won’t find it.”
Zooming its focus on the purple one’s face, it blinked. Turning away blinking, unable to keep it’s eye on the blazing purple.
“Your current lifespan is near the end. Because you see…” the purple one hadn’t moved from his spot. He didn’t have to.
All around the creature were all forms of weapons and artillery, some were familiar, common and uncommon, others were of Donatello’s own design or from hacked government files. Designs he couldn’t make into reality because of the power imbalance he’d bring to the world. That would affect his family, and he’d do anything to keep his family comfortable.
To keep them safe.
To keep the last of his twin’s Ninpo safe.
Donatello formed mystic tech organs, adding armor around the wound to keep the Ninpo inside. Buying a tiny amount of time before his twin faded away.
Standing up, his cheeks were flowing liquid but his gaze.
His gaze was livid.
“...there is no one-” His voice cracked, “...no one HERE to hold me back.”
Glitching purple eyes met blinking red.
Neither noticed the flare of navy blue in the distance, observing the battle, all too familiar with war.
They traveled all over the city on that gray, rainy day until they were chased into the sewers by city police for breaking into an old warehouse.
Lucia held two of the babies close as she followed her savior. It was humid, smelly, and absolutely disgusting but where else could they go? Cameras were popping up all over New York now.
The Hidden city was covered in Big mama’s goons looking for Lou Jitsu. Their mutator was there too, possibly dead but most likely alive. So that was a no-go. For now at least.
Lucia tried to kill Baron Draxum once. She’s not sure what happened but she knows she lost that battle. Yoshi seemed unwilling to commit murder she noted. She’s fairly certain he could defeat the Baron and end it once and for all.
Yoshi led them to an abandoned part of the sewer, it was roomy, and had sections for pipes they could use for rooms. It even had a grate in the ceiling so sunshine could come in.
“We are home now.” Yoshi said after a few minutes of silence.
Nodding, Lucia picked a safe corner to make a nest for the babies. “We should find blankets, food, and check to make sure this area is secure. I think you found a good place…there’s no residual scents except...”
Rubbing his arms, “I can smell it too. We will have to get used to it. You stay with the boys while I get supplies.”
Tilting her over floofed head, “Are you sure? It’s cold outside, shouldn’t we all go? I can keep you warm that way.”
Shaking his head, “No, I can handle this myself. I’m a master at stealth and know my way around the city. It will be easier…knowing my family is safe at home.” Looking at his pink claws, he frowned. His tail twitched at his disgust.
Lucia looked at her paw-like hands too, she wasn’t very fond of looking at them either. She had doggie pads on her hands. Finger beans. Huffing, she laid down around the turtle tots. They instantly crawled closer to the plush warmth.
“You won’t…abandon us right? We’re going to do this together..?” Lucia asked, uneasy. She wanted to trust him, but if he ran off or something happened to him, what was she going to do?
Putting on a brave face, Yoshi brought out his confident persona. “Of course not! I’ll be back before the sun rises with plenty of things!” Thumb to his chest then he gave her a wink as he walked out.
“I will be back soon Lucy!”
“Be careful!!” She called out after him. Taking a nap with her sons, she didn’t notice how tired they were and slept for hours.
Waking up, Yoshi wasn’t back yet.
Lucia wishes she went with him as hours turned to days.
Eventually, when he came back three days later he wouldn’t speak to her. Not about the blood splattered across his shoulders. Or how he had a large reusable bag filled with food and a duffle bag with a sleeping bag, blankets and clothes. Or why one arm and leg was bruised dark purple.
He left as quickly as he came, coming back with more items. Once he was done, he curled into the sleeping bag with the tots.
Worried, Lucia covered them with a blanket. Hoping her companion was alright. If he wasn’t alright it’s not like they could go to a doctor. Deciding to let them all sleep, she began to organize the goods into their respective rooms.
The room with the most pipes will be the kitchen once she figures out how to control the plumbing. The second room with the most pipes will be the bathroom. They’ll need sheets to separate the rooms for privacy. Also candles for light until she could figure out how electricity worked. So much to do.
Days turned into weeks like that, Yoshi gathering and Lucia taking care of the babies and setting up their home.
It was looking pretty decent now, simple and a bit bare but livable.
“You could use a haircut.” Yoshi said one day. The winter was changing into spring topside.
Humming, she looked at her floofy self. She had to agree. Her fur was matted, and it was beginning to itch even when she cleaned herself.
Yoshi wasn’t much better. His fur wasn’t as thick as hers but it was quite long and puffy. His hair covered his eyes, she wasn’t sure how he wasn’t bumping into things.
“You think if we kidnapped a groomer or barber they’d cut our hair?” Lucia joked.
Yoshi hummed, stroking his beard as if he was deep in thought before answering, “A good idea. But no.”
A gurgle, then a babble interrupted their conversation. Eyes wide, the parents looked towards the voice.
“Bap bab, nu, bap!” continued the softshell, as he crawled over to the adults. His siblings were still napping in the sleeping bag after they were fed.
“Oh! Mi precioso!! (My precious!!) You’re talking to us! Oh, please enlighten us. Tell me all that you want to say!” Lucia cheered, scooping the softshell into her arms.
Yoshi rubbed the softshell’s head, who was babbling non-stop pleased with all the attention. “Purple’s the first one to speak…my guess was Red. Since he’s growing so, so much.”
When they first came together as a family, Red, the snapping turtle was the size of their hand. Now he was the size of a dinner plate.
“We need to give them real names soon. We can’t keep calling them colors.” Lucia said softly, kissing the top of the softshell’s head making him squeal.
Flinching, Yoshi looked away which caught Lucia’s attention.
“Are you that attached to using the colors for names..?” She didn’t mean for it to come off aggressive. She was just curious but the way her tone came across made Yoshi shut her out.
“I will be back before dawn.” He said stiffly, already almost out the door.
“Oh Yoshi, I didn’t-”
He was already gone.
They avoided the topic of names for weeks.
------------------------
It was the fourth year of being in the sewers when Lucia noticed something was off about her companion.
Before coming to the sewers, Splinter was taller than her. Now she noticed she was beginning to look down instead of up to meet his eyes.
Or where his eyes would be if he actually looked at her.
She didn’t think she was getting taller…
When her companion came back from the kitchen with snacks, she looked him over. As he handed out the goodies to the tots she noticed his robe was dragging on the floor. His hair graying a little on the sides. He didn't have to squat to reach the kids either. She only noticed it now since Splinter suggested they switch roles. Nowadays, Lucia brings groceries and other necessities while he stays home with the kids to teach them. She had met a Yokai on one of the trips who was guiding her on how to apply for Yokai citizenship. She thought Splinter would be thrilled at the thought of a new identity, but he didn't want to leave home much anymore.
“I have something for you Blue, come here my son.” motioning to the closest turtle tot to him with a box next to him.
Lucia watched as he put a blue bandana on the tot. She had recently found that box of different colored bandanas, most likely from the pet store changing their wares for the season.
“Papa. That’s not Blue, that’s Orange!” Donatello chirped from his pile of blocks and assorted stationery. Next to him, his twin watched their father with an unhappy pout, hands on his hips.
Splinter looked surprised before studying the tot in front of him. Orange spots on the shoulders, plus the youngest was tiny. Worry filled Lucia as Splinter went quiet.
“Yes. It seems this is Orange after all…my mistake.” He took off the blue bandana and replaced it with an orange one. Patting his youngest son’s head fondly, “Orange suits Orange the best.”
Michelangelo grinned, chirping in agreement before running off to his toys.
“Do you want me to give Raphael the red bandana? He’s still in timeout in his room for pushing Leonardo earlier.” Lucia asked gently, understanding what her partner was trying to hide. He would tell her or ask for her help eventually. She'll wait for him.
Sighing, remembering the oldest tot’s temper. “If you wouldn’t mind Lucy.”
Passing by Donatello, Lucia nudged him to go get his respective color. As she left the room, Donnie retrieved the purple bandana from Splinter’s box. Observing the rat tie the blue bandana on his younger twin.
“I can put this on by myself!” Leo complained, watching as Donnie tied it successfully. Mimicking his father’s technique even if the purple bandana was crooked and loose.
“I’m sure you can baby Blue, but I like to help you. Is that ok my son?”
Leo thought about it, staying still enough for Splints to straighten the bandana. Coming to a conclusion Leo nodded, putting his tiny hands on his father’s robe.
“Yeah! I like it when you help me! I like it lots!” Splinter melted at baby blue’s glittering happy eyes, full of adoration for him.
“Papap! Too! Me too!!” Mikey exclaimed from his spot surrounded by dinosaur toys that Splinter had found in a dumpster. One of the bigger dinosaur toys had the color scheme of Lou Jitsu’s iconic costume.
Splinter stared at the toy, thinking of the past. His expression settled into something somber.
“...papa?” Blue was still in his lap but he didn’t have his father’s attention anymore.
Pinching his father’s cheek, no reaction.
Pulling the hairs on his tail, no reaction.
“Daddy?” Leo whispered into sensitive ears. No reaction.
Turning to his older twin for assurance that he still existed, “Don-athan?”
Annoyed, Purple put down his craft in a huff, “What now Leo?” Upon seeing his twin’s watery eyes, Donnie quickly walked over and inspected their father.
Glassy-eyed, slow meditative breaths, stiff posture. Purple looked at the clock on the wall taking note of the time. Helping his twin up out of the unresponsive hold and into a warm hug.
Leo sniffled, his cheek snuggling into his twin's neck for comfort. “He’s doing it again. Why is he doing it when Mom is here?”
Half leaning onto his twin, putting on a brave face as he studied their father’s unseeing eyes. “I don’t know Nardo. I think we should tell her.”
Squeezing a little harder, Blue shook his head, “What if, what if she finds it scary..?”
Donatello hummed, thinking about it. His mind went over all of the memories from the past year, filtering all the important interactions with their mother. Then remembered all the interactions with their father, noting how seemingly random the Freezes happen. It was happening more often now that three out of four turtle tots could talk and walk.
“I don’t think she will. Maybe mom knows why the Freezes happen.” Donnie concluded. Patting his twin, a signal to let go soon so he could continue to gather data.
“Freezes only happen in the winter. Right after autumn, just before the new spring leaves. Remember this Purple, Blue.” Splinter said sagely, getting up from the floor as if he had been part of the conversation the whole time.
Stretching with a yawn, “Keep an eye on baby Orange. I will be watching TV in our room if your mother asks.”
The twins watched him go, with concern on both of their faces. This time the Freeze lasted 8 minutes. The longest one Donatello had recorded in his spiral notebook yet. Leo grabbed Donnie's hand noticing the other's anxiety,
"We will be okay Don-don. As long as we're together, everything will be A-ok."